Broken Floor

AllMusic Review
by Stewart Mason

A "dueling DJs" set by San Francisco's Madame Mercury and DJ Whatt, Broken Floor is hyperkinetic breakbeats and nothing but. Nearly 76 minutes of high-energy techno featuring beats and remixes from DJs around the globe, Broken Floor shows admirable musical variety while maintaining an insistent everybody-on-the-floor beat. The closest thing to a chillout track is the closing "Comprende," with its flamenco-style acoustic guitar hooks, and even it pulses along at a solid 94 beats per minute. Other highlights include "Let's Go," which has the grungy edge of an early-'90s Pop Will Eat Itself track, and the impressive "Needle Gruv Breakdown Mega-Mix," a showcase for DJ Whatt's beat-crazy mixing skills and warped sense of humor. (The recurring hook is a mangled sample of a smooth announcer's voice repeating "This is the funk bass your mom will appreciate.") The variety of beats and skill of the mixes make Broken Floor that rarity, a techno record that can be listened to and not just danced to.